Breaking Bread: Orange scones irresistible even on day when green rules

Wednesday

Mar 15, 2017 at 10:56 AMMar 15, 2017 at 10:56 AM

Lisa Abraham More Content Now

St. Patrick’s Day is March 17, which means folks will be dusting off their recipes for soda bread, scones, and corned beef and cabbage.

Not being of Irish descent, I had no such recipes handed down to me. Because my husband has Irish ancestry, however, I’ve done my best to up my Irish cooking game.

I make him orange scones on Valentine’s Day because they’re his favorite and because nothing orange should be associated with St. Patrick’s Day.

We’ve never been to Ireland, although we talk about visiting there. We have been to Disney World, where we dined at Raglan Road, the Irish Pub in Disney Springs (formerly known as Downtown Disney).

The pub was built in Ireland and shipped to Florida, where it was reassembled for a true Irish pub experience in America.

One of the owners is chef Kevin Dundon, who you might know from the cooking shows “Modern Irish Food” and “Back to Basics,” which air on Create TV on WOSU Plus.

When we were there, Dundon had crafted a menu of contemporary Irish foods that offered the kind of comfort one expects from Irish pub fare — colcannon and shepherd’s pie — yet rose above humdrum Americanized versions of soggy cabbage and boiled potatoes.

The trip was 6 years ago, but I still remember the specifics of my meal. It began with crusty bread and a saucer of Guinness for dipping.

I selected the chicken pie, which came with a salad of field greens; my husband had fish and chips. It was, hands down, the best meal of our vacation.

So you can imagine my delight when, a few months ago, Dundon published “The Raglan Road Cookbook,” which includes the chicken pie recipe.

You’ll find it below, along with my recipe for orange scones.

Even though orange on St. Patrick’s Day’s is probably sacrilege, I know that if I don’t share the recipe, readers will call asking for it. And, frankly, it’s too good not to share.

St. Patrick, forgive me.

‘Mailbox’ fodderSpeaking of hearing from readers, I wanted to share two notes about a recent column I wrote that readers questioned.One reader asked why I referred to my recipe for pasta fagioli as meatless when it uses chicken broth. I used the term meatless because the soup contains no meat, but the chicken broth does prevent it from being considered vegetarian or vegan. To make the soup vegetarian, substitute vegetable broth or water for the chicken broth.Another reader questioned why I store my maple syrup in a pantry when its label clearly states to refrigerate it after opening.

The labels on both pure maple syrup and maple-flavored pancake syrup advise that they be refrigerated after opening. You should all follow this rule.

Pure maple syrup is susceptible to mold, which is why refrigeration is suggested. However, the syrup takes some time to mold, and, because I purchase small bottles, I’m confident that we use it before mold becomes an issue, and I prefer my syrup at room temperature.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and baking powder and orange zest and sift together until well combined.

Using a pastry blender or your hands, cut or rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add the milk, egg, juice and mix with a spoon until dough comes together. Dough may be a bit sticky.

Turn out the dough onto a well-floured board, and, using floured hands, divide into 4 equal portions. Flatten each portion into a circle about 1-inch thick. Cut into quarters. Repeat with remaining dough.Place all 16 scones on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.Brush tops with the egg wash. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Stir powdered sugar and orange juice together until sugar is dissolved and icing is thin enough to drizzle. Add more juice if necessary to achieve a consistency thin enough to drizzle; drizzle on top of warm scones.

Heat the butter in a large shallow saucepan and add a little bit of oil to stop the butter from burning. Add in the chicken and cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Add in the leeks, garlic and mushrooms at this stage together with a little seasoning (salt and pepper).

After cooking for a further 5 minutes, sprinkle in the flour and use this to dry up any liquids in the pot and thicken the sauce. Pour in the white wine, cheese and milk and allow the mixture to come to a gentle boil while stirring all the time. You could add a little cream as well if you’re feeling naughty.

Simmer for 5 to 6 minutes and then transfer to a large casserole dish.Neatly arrange the pastry on top. Brush the pastry lightly with a little egg wash glaze and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Serve with some dressed salad greens.